Vehicle seat suspension system with height and ride indicator

ABSTRACT

The invention provides improved suspension systems for vehicle seats having a variable height and ride or spring arrangement. An indicator means enables a vehicle operator to preadjust the riding height of the seat and the seat spring suspension rates before he sits in the seat. Also, the system enables the driver to change both the height and the suspension rate while he is in the vehicle, despite any preadjustments which he may have made.

ilnitd States Patent [191 Freedman VEHICLE SEAT SUSPENSION SYSTEM WITHHEIGHT AND RIDE INDICATOR [75] Inventor: Gerald Freedman, Evanston, Ill.

[73] Assignee: Freedman Seating Company,

Evanston, Ill.

[22] Filed: Dec. 14, 1970 [21] Appl. No.: 97,551

[52] US. Cl. 248/399, 297/309 [51] Int. Cl B60n 1/02 [58] Field ofSearch 248/399, 400, 401,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,599,232 8/1971 Tabor248/399 2,562,041 7/1951 Keller 297/307 2,829,703 4/1958 Knoedler248/400 X 2,936,818 5/1960 Harrington... 248/399 3,059,890 10/1962 Radke248/399 Meme [451 .1u1y3, 197s 3,075,736 1/1963 Freedman 248/4003,178,148 4/1965 Manke 248/399 3,215,386 11/1965 Swenson 248/4003,268,200 8/1966 Eicher 248/379 X 3,319,920 5/1967 Freedman.. 248/3993,325,136 6/1967 Radke 248/400 3,519,240 7/1970 Swenson 248/399 PrimaryExaminer-Francis K. Zugel Attorney-Alter, Weiss & Whitesel 5 7 ABSTRACTThe invention provides improved suspension systems for vehicle seatshaving a variable height and ride or spring arrangement. An indicatormeans enables a vehicle operator to preacljust the riding height of theseat and the seat spring suspension rates before he sits in the seat.Also, the system enables the driver to change both the height and thesuspension rate while he is in the vehicle, despite any preadjustmentswhich he may have made.

10 Claims, 7 Dravving Figures Patented July 3, 1973 3,743,230

3 Shqets-Sheet l ATTORNEYS INVE NTOR GERALD FREEDMAN Patented July 3,1973 S Sheets-Sheet B mhm INVENTOR GERALD FRE EDMAN BY Q4224,

ATTO RNEYS Patented July 3, 1973 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR GERALDFREEDMAN AT TO RNEYS VEHICLE SEAT SUSPENSION SYSTEM WITH HEIGHT AND RIDEINDICATOR This invention relates to improved vehicle seats, and moreparticularly to suspension systems for use in conjunction with vehicleseats, such as the seats in trucks, buses or other automotive vehicles.

Reference is made to US. Pat. No. 3,599,232, patented by Paul C. Taborand assigned to the assignee of this invention. This invention is animprovement over the device shown in said Tabor patent.

The drivers seats used in vehicles, such as trucks and buses, forexample, generally include a suspension system that floatingly supportsthe seat structure. Usually this suspension system includes springswhich absorb some of the vibrations and shocks generated in the movingvehicle, when it is traveling over a road. Thus, the seats are madesafer and more comfortable for the vehicle operator.

Prior art suspension systems have included both seat height adjustmentsand suspension rate adjustments. Thus, the ride given by the seat may beadjusted to compensate for the amount of seat deflection under any givenload. However, these prior art systems have left much to be desired.

For one thing, certain early seats could not be adjusted by the driverwhile in the vehicle. Therefore, the driver could not modify the rideunless he first stopped the vehicle and got out of the vehicle. Tocorrect this problem, a number of adjusting knobs, cranks and handleswere added to enable the driver to vary the height and ride while he isin the vehicle. However, these adjustments had no indices to give thedriver a preliminary idea as to the initial settings of the adjustments.Thus, if a truck were driven on alternate days by a tall, heavy man anda short, light man, it is possible that up to ten or fifteen minutesmight be wasted each day by a series of trail and error adjustments ofthe truck seat.

Another problem which was sometimes encountered related to the clearanceprovided under the drivers knees and for the driver's feet. Since thesupporting structure tended to project forward near the floor, there wasless room for the driver to move his heels back under the seat. Also,there was a tendancy for the controls to be collected into the areaunder the drivers knees. This made it difficult to adjust the seat,especially when the vehicle is in motion.

Still another consideration relates to the decorative appearance of theseat. When an enclosing shroud is placed around some of the previouslyavailable seats, there was either an ungainly appearance or many largecutouts for the control knobs, levers, etc.

Accordingly, an object of this invention is to provide a new andimproved vehicle seat suspension system for absorbing shocks andvibrations occurring within the moving vehicle.

A related object of the present invention is to provide a seatsuspension arrangement with indices which show the relative resiliencyof a seat mount before a person sits in the seat. Here, an object is toprovide a spring arrangement wherein the existing suspension rate of theseat is indicated throughout an infinite range of rate adjustmentsextending between certain discrete limits.

A further object of this invention is to vary both the seat height andthe spring rate while in the vehicle and without having to change thepreloading of the spring. Here an object is to enable a driver tomaintain a desired suspension rate of the seat without having to changethe riding height of the seat.

In keeping with an aspect of the invention, an automotive seat supportincludes an upper and a lower stanchion interconnected by a compressionspring and associated linkage. If the angle of the spring is changedwith respect to a vertical force vector, the softness or firmness of theride quality is also changed, without affecting the seat height. If apreloaded compression of the spring is changed, the height of the seatis changed without changing the ride quality. Suitable visual indicatorsindicate the angle and the preloaded compression of the spring and,therefore, the ride and height of the seat.

Thus, the suspension rate and the seat riding height are separatelycontrolled. Before he sits down, the driver knows that the height andrate will be comfortable for his own personal preference. Nevertheless,the means for so controlling the height and rate are convenientlypositioned for the driver to make further adjustments while he issitting in the seat.

The above-mentioned and other features and objects of this invention andthe manner of attaining them will become more apparent, and theinvention itself will be best understood by reference to the followingdescription of an embodiment of the invention when taken in conjunctionwith the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the inventive vehicle seat andsuspension system;

FIG. 2 is a plan view looking down at the top of the suspension systemshown in FIG. 1, with the seat removed;

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of the improved vehicle seatsuspension system;

FIG. 4 is a front elevation view of the suspension system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a top plan view of the lower linkage arms and a rateadjustment device for adjusting the ride qualities;

FIG. 6 is a side elevation view of the linkage shown in FIG. 5; and

FIG. 7 is an exploded view of an eye level adjustment assembly.

Similar reference characters indicate corresponding parts and featuresthroughout the various views. More particularly, the improved vehicleseat suspension system 10 (FIG. 1) comprises a lower and an upperstanchion 10A, 103, respectively. The lower stanchion 10A is bolted tothe vehicle floor, and the upper stanchion 108 has the seat boltedthereto. Since the seat represents only one of many similar seats whichcan be used in vehicles, the term automotive vehicle" seat is usedherein to cover all such seats in a generic manner.

This exemplary, fully adjustable vehicle seat includes a seat cushion, aback cushion, and an adjustable counterbalanced structure 10. Thecushions in the seat and back may be molded polyurethane supported byno-sag springs. Any suitable upholstery material, such as vinyl coatedfabric or nylon, may cover the cushions.

The adjustable counterbalanced structure 10 includes a suspensionassembly with slides having an attached platform floating on a leverassembly which is biased to an elevated position by a compression biasspring. A rotary handle 1] enables the ride" of the seat to be changedby adjusting the rate of the bias spring to provide a firm or soft rideaccording to the rider's weight, preference, and road condition. A lever12 provides a latch control which enables the seat to slide forward,backward, or sideways by suitable amounts. The handle bar 13 providesfor and controls an elevation adjustment by preloading the compressionspring. An indicator 14 indicates the ride qualities selected by therotary handle 11, and an indicator or pointer 15A indicates the heightof the seat selected by the handle bar 13. After the compression springangle and tension is properly adjusted, the rider floats on acounterbalanced linkage with a desired degree of firmness.

The suspension system assembly of FIGS. 2-4 includes fore and aft seatsupporting plate 17, 17, mounted on a linkage l5, l6, and the springadjustment control system. The linkage comprises an upper and a lowerpair of coplanar, spaced apart linkage arms 15, 15' and 16, 16',respectively. These two pairs of linkage arms form a parallelepipedframe in combination with the lower and upper stanchions.

To give the driver a more comfortable ride, resilient means are providedin the form of a compression spring 18 for biasing the suspension systemto absorb vibrations generated by the spring vehicle during its motion.Due to the resiliency of this spring means, a given upward force isapplied to the seat for causing a unit deflection thereof. The ratio ofthis force-to-the-unitdeflection is known as the suspension rate.

The resilient means is compression spring 18 having a lower end mountedin a spring keeper assembly 19, and an upper end attached to a springplate assembly 21, which in turn is permanently attached to a horizontaleye-level height adjust shaft assembly 23.

The lower spring keeper assembly 19 is pivotally attached at 24, (FIG.5) to a U-shaped track riding bracket or yoke 26 which provides ameansfor moving the lower end of the spring 18 along the lower parallellinkage arms 16 and 16' in order to vary the rate of the suspensionsystem. Thus, the linkage arms 16, 16 provide the tracks on which theU-shaped track riding bracket or yoke 26 moves.

As best seen in FIGS. 3 and 4, the spring keeper assembly 19 comprises aspring keeper plate 27, a nut 28, and a bolt for receiving the nut. Thekeeper plate 27 is shaped to support the end of the spring 18 and holdit against the U-shaped yoke 26. Thus, the bottom end of the spring 18is free to move along the tracks formed by lower linkage arms 16, 16 tochange the angular attitude of spring 18. The spring keeper assemblypivots in the U-shaped yoke 26 as it is moved in the tracks of the lowerlinkage arms 16 and 16. A changing of the angular disposition or theattitude of spring 18 changes the suspension rate of the seat since theforce vectors applicable to the springs change. Thus, the suspensionrate can be changed continuously to an infinite number of settingswithin the limits of the system.

The upper spring plate assembly 21 comprises an upper spring bracket 30which is held against the spring by means of an upper spring plate 32,that is fixedly attached to the spring, in conjunction with a suitablefastener, such as a bolt 33 cooperating with a nut 34. Thus, it is seenthat bolt 33 runs through the center of the spring to compress itbetween circular plates 27 32 welded to upper and lower brackets 30, 19as the nuts 28 and 34 are tightened on bolt 33.

Means are provided for controlling the ride of the seat, and forindicating the apparent firmness thereof. More particularly, ahorizontally disposed threaded rod 31 (FIG. 5) turns when rotated by thecrank or knob 11 mounted thereon. Two nuts, 35, 36 move in toward thecenter of the shaft 31 when it is turned one way and move out toward theends of the shaft when it is turned the other way. A pair of scissorarms 37, 38 move together or apart as the nuts 35, 36 approach or leaveeach other. This means that the pivot point 39 moves in or out in thedirections A or B responsive to the turning of the knob 11. As the point39 moves in or out, the U-shaped bracket or yoke 26 also moves in thedirections A or B. As the yoke moves, spring 18 pivots on trunnions 24,25 where the spring keeper assembly 19 and yoke 26 are joined.

Mounted on and moving with yoke 26 is the pointer 14 which indicates theamount of yoke travel and therefore the angular attitude of the spring18. As seen in FIG. 1, pointer 14 is over a scale on the seat whichindicates a heavy (H), medium (M), or light (L) ride.

Means are provided for independently adjusting the height of the seatabove the floor to assure a comfortable and safe eye level for thevehicle operator. More particularly, as shown in FIG. 3, an eye-leveladjustment assembly is provided at 55. Assembly 55 comprises a pair ofspaced apart notches brackets, such as bracket 56 with the notches 57therein.

The eye-level height adjust shaft 23 assembly (FIG. 7) is pivotallyattached between the spaced apart and notched brackets 56, at theleft-hand ends thereof (as viewed in FIG. 3). This shaft 23 is fixedlyattached to upper spring bracket 30. A pivot shaft 58 is fixed to thebrackets 56, and journaled to the side walls of the stanchion 10B, thusenabling the assembly 55 to pivot thereabout. The handle bar shaft 13 isfixedly attached on the oppositely disposed sides of the stanchion 108.A pin 57A on bracket 57B is controlled by the handle bar 13 and arrangedto cooperatively mesh with the notches 57 in the bracket plate 56, thusholding the assembly 55 in a fixed vertical position.

Means are provided for holding this notch engaging pin 57A in a normalposition. More particularly, the pin bracket spring 60 reaches from anattachment point on the wall of the upper stanchion support member 103to a catch on the pin bracket 57B controlled by handle bar 13. Thus, thespring 60 holds the pin bracket in a normally raised position so thatthe pin meshes with one of the notches 57.

When the handle 13 is moved the pin bracket 57B is pushed outwardlyagainst the restoring force of spring 60 to release the bracket assemblyand move the pin 57A away from the meshed position in one of the notches57. Thus, to change the seat height or riding elevation, the handle 13is moved to release the pin engaging a notch 57 in the plate 56. Thedriver raises on his feet until he is comfortable. Then he releases thehandle bar 13, and the pin 57A engages another notch 57 on the plate 56.The seat is then secure in a different height. According to theinvention, this can be done before the driver sits down and while theseat is still empty.

Means are provided for indicating the anticipated seat height before thedriver sits down on the seat. In greater detail, the pointer orindicator 15 (FIGS. 1 and 3) is affixed to rotate with the notched plate56 (FIG. 3) as it turns on the shaft 58. Thus, as the right-hand ornotched end of the plate 56 moves upwardly (as viewed in FIG. 3), thepointer or indicator 15A also moves to point in a more upwardlydirection. As the right-hand end of the plate 56 moves downwardly, thepointer or indicator 15A swings into a more downwardly pointingposition. These positions indicate the pre-loaded spring constant ofspring 18, and that constant indicates how far the seat will sink whenthe driver sits in it. As best seen in FIG. 1, the pointer or indicatorindicates the seat height on a suitable scale printed on the side of theseat. Thus, a visual indication enables the seat height to be adjustedso that it returns to a given height position, responsive to the driversweight, when he sits down.

In greater detail, means are provided for pre-loading the compressionspring 18 to vary its spring constant even when the seat supporting unitis in a normally raised and unloaded position (that is, without thedriver in the seat). More particularly, in its normal uncompressedcondition, the spring 18 is longer than the distance between its two endcoupling assemblies 19, 21, at their maximum separation displacement.Thus, when in place, the spring 18 is normally compressed to a preloadedcondition. In addition, a pair of coiled springs 65, 66 (somewhatsimilar to a clocks main spring) are wound or unwound by a turning ofthe shaft 58. These springs act through bracket plate 56 responsive tothe winding or unwinding to transmit spring tension forces through shaft23 which presses downwardly upon the bracket plate 30 to thereby forceit downwardly against the compression of the spring 18 and to force itinto a further pre-loaded condition. The degree of preloading dependsupon the rotary angle assumed responsive to the excursion of the notchedplate 56. After such an excursion, the shaft 23 pushes downwardly uponspring 18 to change its spring constant by a degree which varies as afunction of the rotary excursion. That excursion, in turn, variesaccording to the notch in plate 56 selected by the driver when he movesand releases the handle bar 13.

Means are provided for limiting the upward travel of seat support unit108. More particularly, an anchor means 70 (which may be a hydraulicshock absorber) is attached to the floor 71 and to the upper linkagearms 15, 15' to prevent the arms from rising above a given limit. Thus,the pre-loaded spring 18 forces the upper stanchion 108 to move upwardlyby exerting a vertical lifting force through the right-hand end (asviewed in FIG. 3) of the linkage arms l5, 16 attached between stanchionsA, 10B. As the seat raises, the linkage arms l5, l6 rotate about thepivot pins between 72, 73 which attach them to the lower stanchion 10A.The upward travel of these linkage arms is limited by anchor means 70 asits upper end travels by riding in the slot 75. Thus, at the maximumheight, the seat is retained at a predetermined unloaded raisedposition.

The riding height of the seat varies as a function of the preloadingcompression acting upon the spring 18. Thus, when the pin controlled byhandle bar 13 is in the lowermost notch 77 of the plate 56, the assemblybar 23 pushes downwardly with a maximum force, and the spring 18 iscompressed to its maximum pre-loaded condition. In this condition, thedeflection caused by the drivers weight is minimized, and the ridingheight is maximized. When the plate 56 is moved to have the pincontrolled by the handle bar 13 in the highest notch 78, the spring 18has its minimum preload, and the riding height caused by the driver'sweight is minimum.

Therefore, upon reflection, it should be apparent that the degree ofspring pre-loading indicated by the pointer. or indicator 15A representsthe height of the seat when it is pressed down under the drivers weight.Once the handle bar 13 is released, both the spring preload, and theposition of the pointer, remains fixed relative to the seat stanchion10B. Hence, the position of the pointer is the same, for the same springpre-stress, relative to the seat stanchion 108 (Le, seat height)regardless of whether the driver is or is not in the seat when theadjustment is made.

To lower the seat height, the driver merely has to push down on handlebar 13, exert a force downward on the seat, and allow the handle bar toreturn to its normal position, whereupon the pin fits into one of thenotches 57 (such as notch 78). When this occurs, the shaft assembly 23exerts more or less of a downward force on compression spring 18 and ithas a greater or smaller pre-load thereon. Thus, the seat deflects adifferent amount under the weight of the driver, so that the ridingheight is decreased.

The anchor 70, a well known hydraulic shock absorber, or the like, dampsthe vibration of the suspension system.

In addition to the above described visual displays of the height andride qualities, the invention also provides a number of otherimprovements. Thus, there is a maximum heel room R under the seat. Thespace between the drivers knees and the floor is completely free of allknobs, controls or other protrusions. A shroud completely encloses thelinkage, spring, and support equipment, thereby keeping this equipmentclean and free of debris which may fall from the seat. The back plate ofstanchion 108 also protects the equipment from debris which mightotherwise fall behind the seat.

Other and further modifications may readily occur to those who areskilled in the art. Therefore, the appended claims are to be construedto cover all equivalent structures which may fall within the spirit andthe scope of the invention.

I claim 1. An automotive seat comprising an upper and a lower stanchionmember interconnected for vertical motion by a linkage and an elongatedresilient means movably supported by said linkage,

means associated with one end of said resilient means and said movablesupport for adjustably fixing the angular displacement of said means,means associated with the other end of said resilient means foradjustably preloading said resilient means for fixing the resilience ofsaid means,

means for separately and independently adjusting the movable support andthe preloading means at the two ends of said resilient means to changethe angular displacement and the resilience of said resilient means,thereby separately and independently adjusting the height and ridequalities of said seat, and

means responsive to said separate and independent adjustments at saidtwo ends for separately and independently indicating the height and ridequalities of said seat.

2. The automotive seat of claim 1 wherein said linkage comprises upperand lower spaced parallel arms pivotally attached to and extendingbetween said upper and lower stanchions, and

said resilient means extends at a predetermined angle between at leastone of said arms and the upper stanchion, and means for varying theangle to thereby vary said ride qualities, one of said indicating meansbeing coupled to read out the angle of said resilient means. 3. Theautomotive seat of claim 2 wherein said resilient means is a compressionspring mounted for travel along said arm to vary said angle, and

said one indicator comprises a pointer means moving as a function ofsaid travel. 4. The automotive seat of claim 3 wherein said one arm andanother arm spaced parallel therefrom form tracks, said movable supportfor said resilient means comprising a yoke means moving along tracksformed by said arms,

one end of said compression spring being attached to and riding on saidyoke for changing said angular displacement, and

said one indicator means comprises a pointer coupled to move with saidyoke. 5. The automotive seat of claim 4 and means comprising a threadedrod extending perpendicularly across said tracks with a control handleat the end of said rod for rotating it,

scissor linkage means for positioning the movable yoke means in saidtracks, said scissor linkage being attached to threaded nuts which movetogether or apart as said threaded rod is turned, and

means for moving said yoke and said angular displacement of saidresilient means responsive to the movement of said scissor linkage.

6. The automotive seat of claim 1 wherein said linkage comprises upperand lower spaced parallel arms pivotally attached to and extendingbetween said upper and lower stanchions, and

said resilient means extends between at least one of said arms and theupper stanchion,

means for pre-loading said resilient means to alter the deflectionthereof under weight, and

means responsive to said pre-loading for indicating the height of saidseat.

7. The automotive seat of claim 6 wherein said resilient means comprisesa compression spring,

adjustable means including at least one other spring for pushing downupon and pre-loading said compression spring by a selected amount, and

said seat height indicator comprising means movable responsive to saidadjustable means.

8. An automotive seat comprising means including a first stanchion forattachment to an auto floor,

means including a second stanchion floatingly mounted above said firststanchion,

said floating mount comprising a plurality of linkage arms formed into apivotally interconnected parallelepiped frame which enables said secondstanchion to move between positions which are above and behind saidfirst stanchion,

means comprising a threaded rod extending parallel to the pivotalinterconnections of said parallelepiped frame with a control handle atthe end of said rod for rotating it, scissors linkage means attached tothreaded nuts riding on said threaded rods, said nuts moving together orapart as said threaded rod is turned,

compression spring means interconnected between said parallelepipedframe and said second stanchion, said compression spring meanscomprising two opposing springs angularly disposed with respect to saidlinkage arms,

one of said springs being an elongated member having an angulardisplacement with respect to said parallelepiped frame, means forchanging said angular displacement responsive to the movement of saidscissors linkage,

means associated with one of said springs for movement of said onespring relative to the other spring whereby the opposition of saidsprings is varied, and

indicator means for indicating the opposing relationship of the twosprings whereby a first indicator indicates the eye level of an occupantof the seat, and a second indicator indicates the amount of said angularmovement of said one spring means, thereby indicating the ride qualityof the seat.

9. The seat of claim 8 wherein said first and second stanchions areshaped to recede from the edge of a seat cushion positioned on saidsecond stantion back under said seat to provide heel room for a personsitting on said cushion.

10. The seat of claim 8 wherein said second indicator means comprisesone pointer moved responsive to movement of said scissors means forindicating the angle between at least one of said arms and said firstindicator comprises a second pointer for indicating a preloading on saidspring caused by the opposition of said springs.

1. An automotive seat comprising an upper and a lower stanchion memberinterconnected for vertical motion by a linkage and an elongatedresilient means movably supported by said linkage, means associated withone end of said resilient means and said movable support for adjustablyfixing the angular displacement of said means, means associated with theother end of said resilient means for adjustably preloading saidresilient means for fixing the resilience of said means, means forseparately and independently adjusting the movable support and thepreloading means at the two ends of said resilient means to change theangular displacement and the resilience of said resilient means, therebyseparately and independently adjusting the height and ride qualities ofsaid seat, and means responsive to said separate and independentadjustments at said two ends for separately and independently indicatingthe height and ride qualities of said seat.
 2. The automotive seat ofclaim 1 wherein said linkage comprises upper and lower spaced parallelarms pivotally attached to and extending between said upper and lowerstanchions, and said resilient means extends at a predetermined anglebetween at least one of said arms and the upper stanchion, and means forvarying the angle to thereby vary said ride qualities, one of saidindicating means being coupled to read out the angle of said resilientmeans.
 3. The automotive seat of claim 2 wherein said resilient means isa compression spring mounted for travel along said arm to vary saidangle, and said one indicator comprises a pointer means moving as afunction of said travel.
 4. The automotive seat of claim 3 wherein saidone arm and another arm spaced parallel therefrom form tracks, saidmovable support for said resilient means comprising a yoke means movingalong tracks formed by said arms, one end of said compression springbeing attached to and riding on said yoke for changing said angulardisplacement, and said one indicator means comprises a pointer coupledto move with said yoke.
 5. The automotive seat of claim 4 and meanscomprising a threaded rod extending perpendicularly across said trackswith a control handle at the end of said rod for rotating it, scissorlinkage means for positioning the movable yoke means in said tracks,said scissor linkage being attached to threaded nuts which move togetheror apart as said threaded rod is turned, and means for moving said yokeand said angular displacement of said resilient means responsive to themovement of said scissor linkage.
 6. The automotive seat of claim 1wherein said linkage comprises upper and lower spaced parallel armspivotally attached to and extending between said upper and lowerstanchions, and said resilient means extends between at least one ofsaid arms and the upper stanchion, means for pre-loading said resilientmeans to alter the deflection thereof under weight, and means responsiveto said pre-loading for indicating the height of said seat.
 7. Theautomotive seat of claim 6 wherein said resilient means comprises acompression spring, adjustable means including at least one other springfor pushing down upon and pre-loading said compRession spring by aselected amount, and said seat height indicator comprising means movableresponsive to said adjustable means.
 8. An automotive seat comprisingmeans including a first stanchion for attachment to an auto floor, meansincluding a second stanchion floatingly mounted above said firststanchion, said floating mount comprising a plurality of linkage armsformed into a pivotally interconnected parallelepiped frame whichenables said second stanchion to move between positions which are aboveand behind said first stanchion, means comprising a threaded rodextending parallel to the pivotal interconnections of saidparallelepiped frame with a control handle at the end of said rod forrotating it, scissors linkage means attached to threaded nuts riding onsaid threaded rods, said nuts moving together or apart as said threadedrod is turned, compression spring means interconnected between saidparallelepiped frame and said second stanchion, said compression springmeans comprising two opposing springs angularly disposed with respect tosaid linkage arms, one of said springs being an elongated member havingan angular displacement with respect to said parallelepiped frame, meansfor changing said angular displacement responsive to the movement ofsaid scissors linkage, means associated with one of said springs formovement of said one spring relative to the other spring whereby theopposition of said springs is varied, and indicator means for indicatingthe opposing relationship of the two springs whereby a first indicatorindicates the eye level of an occupant of the seat, and a secondindicator indicates the amount of said angular movement of said onespring means, thereby indicating the ride quality of the seat.
 9. Theseat of claim 8 wherein said first and second stanchions are shaped torecede from the edge of a seat cushion positioned on said secondstantion back under said seat to provide heel room for a person sittingon said cushion.
 10. The seat of claim 8 wherein said second indicatormeans comprises one pointer moved responsive to movement of saidscissors means for indicating the angle between at least one of saidarms and said first indicator comprises a second pointer for indicatinga preloading on said spring caused by the opposition of said springs.